The International Olympic Committee believes it is too early to lift sanctions against aggressor countries.
The International Olympic Committee will not make its recommendations to the federations on the withdrawal of Russians and Belarusians from international competitions. IOC President Thomas Bach spoke about this in an interview with Sport Bild.
According to him, it is too early to remove the disqualification and it can only happen after the war in Ukraine.
“Now is not the time to change recommendations or attitudes. We still do not recommend inviting Russian or Belarusian athletes to compete, still no anthem, no flag, no national colors.
I thank the international federations for listening to us. That athletes who support the war, appear or advertise with the infamous letter Z, are allowed. This is what happens.
Otherwise, we are now faced with an insurmountable problem: our task in such a situation is really to rally the athletes and show that there is a peaceful competition. But here we are in a situation where some governments decide who can and who cannot participate in an international competition. This is completely against our policies and our mission.
You know how tense and confrontational the geopolitical situation is, not only in Russia and Belarus. Tomorrow, governments will decide that athletes from this or that country are not welcome either. Then the sport will become part of the system of sanctions and counter-sanctions, which is common now,” said Bach.
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Source: korrespondent
I am William Jackson and I have a passion for sports journalism. With over 3 years of experience in the industry, I have worked in a variety of roles to improve the quality and accuracy of sports news coverage. As an author at Athletistic, I specialize in covering football news and providing comprehensive analysis for fans around the world.
